December 12
Last summer we traveled to Virginia to attend a family wedding and had the opportunity to take a few extra travel days on the way home. For many years, I wanted to drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway and the Skyline Drive, and this trip was important to me. My preparation for travel always includes studying maps and information on the areas that we will be traveling through as well as possible routes. I do this not to find the quickest or most efficient way to our destination. I do it so I can understand and better appreciate the time we spend on route and the things we see and do in the time and space between the beginning and the end of the trip.
I go though this preparation because many years ago I understood that we are alive in God’s gift of time and space. This understanding comes from God who transcends time and space. I learned that this preparation allows me to carefully observe and appreciate the things that God and man have created along the path I am traveling. This is especially true of the physical journey through space. It is true of the journey through time such as the one that takes us from day to night and frequently passes through the “golden hour” and on to a sunset. We can be so focused on the destination that we miss the beauty that God has created for us on the way.
It is also true of the spiritual journey through time as represented in our season of Advent. Christmas is the destination, but Advent is God’s time to encourage us to reflect on the path we take to that point. If we focus only on preparing for Christmas, we will miss the value of preparing for and appreciating the journey that takes us there. We may miss the opportunity to recognize and appreciate the many gifts that God has made available all around us that culminate in the greatest gift of all, his son Jesus Christ. We can forget that we have God’s gifts of time and space that we should be careful to appreciate especially during the hustle and bustle of the holidays.
Don Muller
I go though this preparation because many years ago I understood that we are alive in God’s gift of time and space. This understanding comes from God who transcends time and space. I learned that this preparation allows me to carefully observe and appreciate the things that God and man have created along the path I am traveling. This is especially true of the physical journey through space. It is true of the journey through time such as the one that takes us from day to night and frequently passes through the “golden hour” and on to a sunset. We can be so focused on the destination that we miss the beauty that God has created for us on the way.
It is also true of the spiritual journey through time as represented in our season of Advent. Christmas is the destination, but Advent is God’s time to encourage us to reflect on the path we take to that point. If we focus only on preparing for Christmas, we will miss the value of preparing for and appreciating the journey that takes us there. We may miss the opportunity to recognize and appreciate the many gifts that God has made available all around us that culminate in the greatest gift of all, his son Jesus Christ. We can forget that we have God’s gifts of time and space that we should be careful to appreciate especially during the hustle and bustle of the holidays.
Don Muller